Training scripts

ABSTRACT

A training script device is described that conveniently allows a user to create a training script defining one or more steps of a workout routine, where each step may include an activity, a duration for performing that activity, and an intensity at which the activity is to be performed. Further, one or more steps of the training script can be self-starting in response to performance data detected by sensors of training script device executing the training script. This conveniently frees the athlete from having to continuously monitor the status of his or her workout activities. Still further, the training script device conveniently allows a user to transfer training scripts to other training script devices, so that athletes can share successful training scripts.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/413,366 filed Apr. 15, 2003, which claims priority to provisionalU.S. patent application Ser. No. 60/386,210 filed May 30, 2002, thecontents of each of which is expressly incorporated herein by referencein its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a workout script for providing a user withworkout instructions based upon characteristics of the user during theworkout, or upon characteristics of the workout itself. For example, aworkout script may instruct a user to run until the user's heart ratereaches 80 beats per minute, and then subsequently instruct the user tostretch for a cooling-off period of ten minutes. Alternately, a scriptmay instruct a user to run for a predetermined distance or for apredetermined period of time, and then instruct the user to take anotheraction after the distance has been run or the period of time hasexpired. Still further, the invention relates to the creation and use ofsuch workout scripts.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

There has been a steadily growing interest in fitness, both for healthreasons and for personal development. As the popularity of variousphysical fitness activities has grown, people have become moreinterested in achieving specific goals through these activities. Forexample, some people take up exercise to lose weight, others toparticipate in a particular type of sport, such as soccer or marathonracing, and still others just to gradually improve their overallphysical condition. Correspondingly, a great deal of scientific researchhas been conducted as to how people may reach these specific goals. Forexample, some scientific research has indicated that the fastest way forsomeone to lose fat through exercise is to exercise such that theperson's heart rate is maintained within a specific range or “zone” ofbeats per minute.

This research should ideally allow people of all walks of life tomaximize the results obtained from their fitness activities. Inpractice, however, few people can take advantage of this research. Whilean athlete may create a schedule of fitness activities or trainingroutine designed to obtain specific results through one or more physicalactivities, he or she will probably have difficulty following thattraining routine while actually engaged in those physical activities.

For example, an optimized group of physical activities or “workout” maycall for an athlete to run until his or her heart rate is within adesired heart rate zone (that is, a percentage range of his or hermaximum heart rate), and then switch to another, less strenuousactivity, such as jogging or stretching, after ten minutes. Whilerunning, however, that athlete cannot easily determine when his or herheart rate reaches the targeted zone. Even if he or she employs a heartrate monitor to measure his or her heart rate, the athlete mustcontinuously watch the heart rate monitor to ascertain when his or herheart rate reaches the desired zone. The athlete must then initiate atimer to measure how long his or her heart rate remains within thedesired zone.

This module requires significant concentration that detracts from theworkout itself. Thus, users will commonly not adhere to a trainingroutine, or, alternatively, will not prepare a detailed training routinethat maximizes the results of their workout. Accordingly, there is aneed for a method and apparatus that will allow a person to create atraining routine scheduling each part or step of a workout, determinewhen the requirements of a particular step have been fulfilled, and thenprompt the user to begin the subsequent step of the workout.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Advantageously, the invention allows a user to create a training scriptfor a workout. That is, the invention allows a user to create a set ofinstructions that defines a series of activities to be performed duringa workout, and a quantity associated with at least one of theactivities. When executed, the instructions prompt a device tosequentially display each activity until the athlete has performed thedefined quantity associated with that activity, and then to display thenext activity. The device may further allow a user to electronicallyshare created training scripts with others.

Still further, the invention may include a device that displays aphysical activity listed in an electronic training script to a user. Thedevice then detects at least one characteristic of the user's workoutassociated with a quantity defined in the training script for thatphysical activity. When the device detects that the workoutcharacteristic matches the defined quantity, the device then displaysthe next activity subsequently listed in the electronic training script.Thus, the invention provides a way for a user to design a precisetraining routine, and then to be timely prompted to follow the trainingroutine. Further, the invention allows a user to share a successfultraining routine with others. These and other features of the inventionwill become apparent based upon the following description of theinvention with reference to associated drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a generic computing device that can be used for creating atraining script or for implementing a training script according to anembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of a device for creating a trainingscript and a device for implementing a training script according to anembodiment of the invention.

FIGS. 3, 4A, 4B, 5A-5P, 7A-7C and 9 show various user interfacesaccording to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates a flow chart for creating a training script.

FIG. 8 illustrates a flow chart for using an interface according to anembodiment of the invention to create a plan of one or more trainingscripts.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Overview

The invention allows a user to create a training script for a workout. Atraining script is a group of one or more training steps correspondingto different portions of a workout. Each training step includesinstructions to be executed by a computing device. These instructionsdefine an action, such as a physical activity to be performed during aworkout, and a quantity associated with that action. When executed by acomputing device, the instructions command the computing device todisplay a prompt for the user to perform the action, until the devicereceives performance data indicating that the user has performed thequantity designated for the action. The device then executes the nextsequential training step. Using these instructions, the device willsequentially display a prompt for the user to perform each action in aworkout, until the user performs the designated quantity for each of theactions.

According to various embodiments of the invention, the quantity forperforming an action can be the duration of the action itself. Forexample, the duration may be the time period for which the action is tobe performed. Alternately, the duration may be a distance to betraversed by performing the action. A training step may thus call for anathlete to run for the duration of five miles. Still further, theduration may be the number of times that an action should be repeated,or an amount of work exerted while performing the action. A trainingstep could, for example, call for an athlete to repeat a weight-liftingexercise 20 times, or jog until the athlete has burned 600 calories.

A step may also specify a quantity for performing an action that isbased upon an intensity associated with that action. The intensity of anaction may be defined by any desired unit, such as the heart rateexperienced by the user while performing the action. The intensity mayalso be, for example, a pace at which the action is performed, or anamount of force created while performing the action. Still further, astep may include a quantity specifying both an intensity and a duration.Thus, a step may call for a biker to bike at a force of 200 dynes for 35minutes. Of course, still other units of measurement can be used todefine a quantity for performing an action, such as a user's bloodoxygen level or blood pressure level.

General Computing Device

Various embodiments of the invention may conveniently be implemented ona general-purpose computing device, such as a desktop personal computer,a laptop computer, or a personal digital assistant (PDA), or on aspecial-purpose computing device, such as a digital wristwatch.Referring now to FIG. 1, this figure illustrates an exemplarygeneral-purpose computer device that can be used to implement variousaspects of the invention. In FIG. 1, the computer device 101 has acomputer 103 that includes a processor 105, such as a programmablemicroprocessor, and a system memory 107 coupled to the processor 105.The system memory 107 may be implemented using any appropriate memorydevices, such as one or more microcircuit devices. The system memory 107will typically include both a read only memory (ROM) 109 and a randomaccess memory (RAM) 111. The ROM 109 and RAM 111 may be connected to theprocessor 105 using a conventional bus structure (not shown), such as amemory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, and a local bus usingany of a variety of bus architectures.

The computer device 101 will also include one or more input devices 113.For example, if the computer device 101 is a conventional desktopcomputer or laptop computer, it may include a keyboard 113 a, and apointing device 113 b, such as a mouse or touchpad. Further, thecomputer device 101 may include additional or alternate input devices113, such as a microphone, a pointing stick, or a digitizer foraccepting input through a stylus. If the computer device 101 is aspecial-purpose computing device, such as a digital wristwatch, it mayinstead only have input devices suited for its particular purpose.

For example, rather than a large keyboard 113 a or pointing device 113b, if the computer device 101 is a wristwatch it may instead include abutton interface 113 c having a small number of depressable buttons. Itmay also have one or more sensors 113 d for measuring characteristics ofthe device's environment. Thus, the sensors 113 d may include a heartrate monitor for measuring the heart rate of a person using the computerdevice 101, an accelerometer or pedometer for measuring the travel of aperson using the computer device 101, a thermometer, an altimeter, acompass, a blood oxygen monitor for monitoring the blood oxygen contentof a person using the computer device 101, or other measurement device.A sensor 113 d may be included in the same casing as the computingdevice 103, or the sensor 113 d may be remotely locating and transmitmeasured data to the computing device 103 using a wired or wirelessmedium.

The computer device 101 will also include one or more output devices115, such as a display screen 115 a, a printer 115 b, and speakers 115c. For example, if the computer device 101 is a conventional desktopcomputer, then the display screen 115 a may be a large CRT or flat panelmonitor. Alternately, if the computer device 101 is a special-purposecomputing device, it may only have the output devices 115 suited for itsparticular purpose. For example, if the computer device 101 is a digitalwristwatch, display screen 115 a may be a small LCD display, and thecomputer device 101 may have only one small speaker 115 b and omit theprinter 115 c altogether. Of course, the computer device 101 may alsoinclude additional or alternate output devices 115 as desired.

Depending upon its configuration, the computer device 101 may alsoinclude one or more peripheral data storage devices 117. The computerdevice 101 may have, for example, a magnetic disk drive 117 a forreading from and writing to a magnetic disk (such as a hard disk driveor a floppy disk drive), and an optical disk drive 117 b for readingfrom or writing to a removable optical disk (such as a CD ROM or otheroptical media). Of course, the computer device 101 may also includeother types of data storage devices 117, such as magnetic cassettes,flash memory cards, digital video disks, Bernoulli cartridges. Also, ifthe computer device 101 is a digital wristwatch, then the computerdevice 101 may include a small peripheral data storage device 117, suchas a Memory Stick or a Secure Digital card.

As will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, thecomputer device 101 executes instructions stored in the system memory107. These instructions may be retrieved to the system memory 107 fromone or more of the peripheral storage devices. In addition, the computerdevice 101 may receive input data for executing the instructions from auser through the input devices 113. Similarly, the computer device 101may output the results of executing the instructions to the user throughthe output devices 115.

Some computer devices 101 can operate in a network of other computerdevices 101. The network may be, for example, a local area network (LAN)119 or a wide area network (WAN) 121, such as the Internet. Forconnection to the local area network 119, the computer device 101 mayinclude a network interface or adapter 123. For connection to the widearea network 121, the computer device may include a modem 125 or othermeans for establishing communications over the wide area network 121. Ofcourse, it will be appreciated that the network connections shown areexemplary, and that other techniques for establishing a communicationslink with other computer devices 101 can be used. Further, those ofordinary skill in the art will appreciate that a variety ofcommunication protocols may be used for exchanging data between computerdevices 101, such as TCP/IP, Ethernet, FTP, HTTP.

System for Creating and Executing a Training Script

FIG. 2 illustrates a master device 201 for creating a training script,and a servant device 211 for implementing a training script. Moreparticularly, a user employs the master device 201 to createinstructions making up a training script, and the servant device 211executes the instructions of the training script. As will be appreciatedby those of ordinary skill in the art, the master device 201 may be acomputer device 101 of the type described about, such as a desktop orlaptop computer, implementing a software application for definingtraining scripts. Of course, with various embodiments of the invention,the master device 201 may instead be a hardware or firmware device forcreating training scripts.

Once the user has created the training script, the script is transferredfrom the master device 201 to the servant device 211. With someembodiments of the invention, the servant device 211 may be a portablecomputer device 101 of the type described above that can be easilycarried by an athlete during a workout. For example, the servant device211 may be embodied as a wristwatch with one or more remote sensors formeasuring various characteristics of the user's workout. Of course, theservant device 211 also may be implemented with other types of portablecomputer devices, such as personal digital assistants. Alternately, theservant device 211 may be implemented using hardware or firmware.

Device for Creating a Training Script

As seen in FIG. 2, the master device 201 includes a master controlmodule 203, a master user interface module 205, a master deviceinterface module 207, and a master script database 209. As will bediscussed in detail below, for each step to be included in a trainingscript, the master user interface module 205 prompts a user to inputdata specifying an action to be performed for that step. The master userinterface module 205 also prompts the user to specify a quantity of theaction to be performed. From the input data received through the masteruser interface module 205, the master control module 203 createstraining steps for operating the servant device 211, and compiles thetraining steps into a training script file.

The master control module 203 then forwards the training script file tothe master script database 209 for storage. As will be appreciated bythose of ordinary skill in the art, the master script database 209 maybe embodied using any suitable memory medium. The master script database209, for example, may be implemented on a microcircuit random accessmemory, a magnetic disk drive, a writable optical disk drive or thelike.

When the user desires to exercise using the created training script, theuser instructs the master control module 203 to transfer the trainingscript file from the master script database 209 to the master deviceinterface module 207. The master device interface module 207 thenprovides the training script file to the servant device 211. As will beappreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, the master deviceinterface module 207 can be implemented using a variety of techniques.For example, the master device interface module 207 may employ awireless communication device to communicate with the servant device211, such as an infrared or radio frequency transmitter. Alternately,the master device interface module 207 may include a cable port foremploying a hard-wired communication device to communicate with theservant device 211, such as an RS-232, USB or Firewire link.

With some embodiments of the invention, the master device interfacemodule 207 or other interface module may allow the master device 201 totransmit training scripts files to and/or receive training script filesfrom a variety of other devices in addition to the servant device 211,such as other computing devices 101 including, for example, other masterdevices 201. Again, the master device interface module 207 may employany suitable communication protocol to transfer training script filesfrom the master device interface module 207 to these other devices. Itshould be noted that training script files, like other electronic files,can be transferred from the master device 201 to other computer devices101 using any known file transfer technique. For example, the masterdevice 201 may be embodied by a personal computer that also supportselectronic mailing protocols, such as the POP3 protocol. With thisarrangement, a user can transfer a training script from the masterdevice 201 to another computer device 101 using electronic mail. Also,protocols such as WiFi or Bluetooth for wireless communications can beused to wirelessly transmit training script files to other devices.

By allowing a user to transfer created training script files from themaster device 201 to another computer device 101, athletes may easilyand conveniently share successful training routines with each other.Rather than having to write down a particular training routine, anathlete can simply transfer the electronic training script file toanother athlete using, for example, electronic mail. The athletereceiving the electronic training script file can then forward the fileto his or her servant device 211, and exercise according to the routinedefined by the training script file without ever having to examine ormanually copy the workout routine defined by the training script.

Creating a Training Script

FIG. 3 illustrates a first user interface 301 provided by the masteruser interface module 205 for creating a training script. The interface301 includes a group of data fields that allow a user to define a userprofile. As will be discussed below, defining a user profile allows auser to associate one or more workouts and a servant device 211 with aparticular athlete. This conveniently allows more than one person toshare the use of the master device 201 without confusing training scriptfiles between the users.

The interface 301 includes a name field 303 naming the profile. Thus, auser may enter his or her own name into the name field 303 to identifythe user profile with that particular user. Each user profile includes aschedule of training scripts selected by the user. Each profile alsocontains a group of training script files, referred to as the “favoriteworkouts” group. A user may then add existing training script files toor delete training script files from this group of favorite trainingscripts. The favorite workouts group allows a user to avoid having toscroll through every training script created with or received by themaster device 201 each time the user wants to use a particular script.Instead, the user can simply include his or her favorite training scriptin the “favorite workout” group for the user's profile, and select adesired script for use directly from this smaller group. As will beexplained in detail below, when a user “synchronizes” the servant device211 to the master device 201, both the training scripts in the “favoriteworkout” group and the scheduled training scripts are copied to theservant device 211.

In addition to the name field 303, the interface 301 also has a servantdevice identification field 305, which associates the user profile witha particular servant device 211. As noted above, a computer device 101used to embody a servant device 211 may have one or more sensors 113 dfor measuring the characteristics of a user's activities. A trainingscript may thus include instructions that are executed in response tothe servant device 211 receiving data from a particular type of sensor113 d. Different servant devices 211 may have different types of sensors113 d, however, so a workout that may execute on one servant device 211may not properly execute on a different servant device 211. The value ofthe servant device identification field 305 can be used to addressdifferences in servant devices by specifically identifying the user'sservant device 211, and, by extension, the sensors 113 d and otherequipment included with the user's servant device 211.

For example, the master device 201 may include a table correlatingservant device 211 identification values with one or more sensors 113 d.Thus, when the user enters a value into the servant deviceidentification field 305, the master device 201 can determine thesensors 113 d employed by the user's servant device 211 from the table.Alternately, the master device 201 may use the value entered into theservant device identification field 305 to determine the sensors 113 davailable for use by the servant device 211 from a remote source, suchas a database available over a network (e.g., the Internet). If theuser's servant device 211 does not have a particular sensor 113 drequired by a training script, then the master device 201 may refrainfrom copying that training script to the user's servant device 211during synchronization.

The interface 301 also includes age, weight and sex fields 307-311,respectively. The user may enter this information about himself orherself into these fields. Of course, with other embodiments of theinvention, the interface 301 may include fields for additional userhealth information, or may omit any of fields 307-311 entirely.

After the user has created a user profile by entering the relevantvalues into the interface 301, the master user interface module 207displays interface 401 shown in FIG. 4A. This interface, which is themain user interface for creating and using training scripts, includes auser profile sub-interface 403, a set watch sub-interface 405, a planssub-interface 407, a workout sub-interface 409, a favorite workoutssub-interface 411, and a calendar sub-interface 413. The user profilesub interface 403 includes a name field 403 a, identifying the name ofthe currently selected user profile, and an edit button 403 b, which,when activated, causes the master user interface module 207 to displaythe user interface 301. The set watch sub-interface 405 is a commandbutton. As will be discussed in detail below, activating the commandbutton 405 causes the master user interface module 207 to display a userinterface for adjusting the settings of the associated servant device211, which, in this embodiment, is a watch. The favorite workoutssub-interface 411 provides a listing of the training scripts the userhas included in the favorite workouts group of the profile.

The workout sub-interface 409 includes a list 409 a of previouslycreated (or received) training scripts corresponding to individualworkout routines. The workout sub-interface 409 also includes a workoutbuilder command button 409 b that allows a user to create a new trainingscript. When a user activates the workout builder command button 409 b,the master user interface module 207 provides the user with interface501 shown in FIG. 5A. The operation of this interface will be explainedwith reference to FIGS. 5A-5P and to FIG. 6, which illustrates aflowchart showing how a training script can be created using theinterface 501.

First, in step 601, the user enters the name of the training script intothe workout selection field 503 of the interface 501. As will beappreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, the workout selectionfield 503 provides a drop-down menu 503 a, listing the previouslycreated workout training scripts associated with the current userprofile, as shown in FIG. 5B. Thus, if the user is going to edit atraining script that already exists, the user simply selects the name ofthat training script from the drop-down menu 503 a. If the user insteadwishes to create a new workout training script, he or she selects thename “New Workout” from the drop down menu 503 a. This selection ensuresthat the remaining fields in the display 501 are empty for the user toenter values, as shown in FIG. 5A.

The interface 501 also includes a workout name field 505 and adescription field 507. The workout name field 505 allows a user tocreate a name for the new workout training script, as shown in FIG. 5C.Providing a name for a workout training script conveniently allows it tobe easily referenced later. As also seen in FIG. 5C, the descriptionfield 507 can contain a brief description of the workout trainingscript, such as an identification of its purpose or difficulty.

The interface 501 further includes a steps interface 509 (referred to bythe title “STEPS” in the figure). The steps interface 509 includes aplurality of step sub-interfaces 511. Each step sub-interface 511appears as a row of six fields 513-523. More particularly, as seen inFIG. 5A, each step sub-interface 511 includes a repeat field 513, anactivity field 515, a duration field 517, an intensity field 519, aprompt field 521, and an auto start field 523. The function andoperation of each of these fields 513-523 will be described in detailbelow. The steps interface 509 also includes edit buttons 525-531 forediting the arrangement of the step sub-interfaces 511. The function anduse of these edit buttons 525-531 are well known in the art, and thuswill not be discussed in detail here.

Turning first to the field 515, this field provides a drop-down menu 515a listing a variety of actions. For example, as seen in FIG. 5D, thedrop-down menu 515 a may include the actions “open” (that is, nospecified activity), “stretch,” “warm up,” “run,” “walk,” “jog,” “go,”and “recover.” Of course, it will be appreciated that other embodimentsof the invention may list more, less or different activities. Using thedrop-down menu 515 a, in step 603 the user selects a particular activityto be displayed in the field 515. It should also be noted, however, thatwhile the illustrated embodiment of the invention employs the drop-downmenu 515 a to select a value for the field 515, other embodiments of theinvention may allow a user to enter a value directly into the field 515.

When the user selects the value of the field 515, this value is thenadded to the prompt field 521. The prompt field 521 for a stepsub-interface 511 contains the information that will be displayed to auser when instructions corresponding to that step are later executed bya servant device 211. Thus, if the user selects the activity “run” forthe field activity field 515, the word “run” is added to the promptfield 521, as seen in FIG. 5E. Of course, the display of the selectedactivity (or duration or intensity, as will be discussed below) in theprompt field 521 may be omitted with various embodiments of theinvention. Further, as will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill inthe art, some embodiments of the invention may omit the prompt fields521 altogether.

The duration field 517 in a step sub-interface 511 allows the user toselect a duration for performing the activity designated in the step.Thus, the duration field 517 provides a drop down menu 517 a listing avariety of duration units, as shown in FIG. 5F. The menu 517 a mayinclude, for example, “open” (indicating that no duration has beenselected) “time,” and “distance.” Of course, other embodiments of theinvention may provide still other units for determining a duration of anactivity. Using this menu 517 a (or, with some embodiments of theinvention, entering a value directly into the duration field 517), theuser selects a duration of the activity in step 607.

Depending upon the duration type selected for the duration field 517,the interface 501 may provide a sub-field corresponding to the selectedduration type. For example, if the user selects the value “time” for theduration field 517, the interface 501 provides a time sub-interface 517b as shown in FIG. 5G. The time sub-interface 517 b includes achronographic display defining the time period for which the activitydefined for the step is to be performed. Using conventional arrowbuttons, the user can adjust the value of the sub-interface 517 b todefine a desired time period.

Similarly, if the user selects the value “distance” for the durationfield 517, the interface 501 provides sub-interfaces 517 c with fields517 d and 517 e, as shown in FIG. 5H. The field 517 d contains a valuefor a distance to be traveled while performing the activity. The usercan type a desired value into this field 517 d. The field 517 e thenprovides a drop down menu, accessed by activating the button 517 f,listing different distance units. For example, with the illustratedembodiment, the list includes “miles,” “kilometers,” and “meters.” Ofcourse, those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that stillother distance units, such as “yards” and “feet,” may be alternately oradditionally included in the list.

Thus, a user selects a particular type of duration, and enters valuesinto the sub-interface fields associated with that type of duration instep 605. The values entered by the user then also appear in the promptfield 521. For example, if the user selects a duration value of “6.00miles” for the duration field 517, this value also appears in the promptfield 521 as shown in FIG. 51. It should be noted, however, that a usermight choose not to select any values for a duration of the designatedactivity, and instead leave the value of the field 517 as “open.” Inthis situation, no information is added to the prompt field 521, asshown in FIG. 5E.

Next, in step 607, the user may select an intensity for the workout byentering a value into the intensity field 519. As seen in FIG. 5J, theintensity field 519 provides a drop down menu 519 a listing differenttypes of intensity measurements. For example, with the illustratedembodiment, the intensity field 519 provides a drop down list 519 aincluding the intensity types “open” (when no value is selected),“heartrate,” “pace”, “heartrate less than or equal to,” and “heartrategreater than or equal to.” Of course, those of ordinary skill in the artwill appreciate that other units of intensity may alternately oradditionally be displayed. As with the duration field 517, when any ofthe units are selected from the drop down list 519 a, the interface 501provides a sub-interface associated with that type of intensitymeasurement.

For example, if a user selects the intensity type “heartrate,” theinterface 501 provides the sub-interface 519 b containing the fields 519c and 519 d for defining a range of heartrates (measured based upon apercentage of a user's previously recorded maximum heartrate, forexample), as shown in FIG. 5K. Thus, a user types a minimum desiredheartrate percentage value into the field 519 c and a maximum desiredheartrate percentage value into the field 519 d. The values entered intothese fields are then displayed in the prompt field 521. For example, ifthe user enters the value 60% into the field 519 c, and the value 85% inthe field 519 d, these values appear in the prompt field 521, as shownin FIG. 5K.

Similarly, if a user selects the intensity type “pace,” the interface501 provides the sub-interface 519 e, as shown in FIG. 5L. Thesub-interface 519 e includes a maximum time field 519 f and a minimumtime field 519 g, in which the user enters values to select a maximumpace time and a minimum pace time, respectively. The sub-interface 519 ealso includes a distance unit field 519 h, which provides a drop downmenu listing various distance units. With the illustrated embodiment,the menu lists “kilometers,” “miles,” and “0.4/kilometers.” Of course,those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the menu mayinclude more, fewer, or different units. By selecting a maximum pacetime, a minimum pace time, and a distance unit, the user can define amaximum and minimum pace for performing the selected activity. It shouldbe noted that, as the values are entered into each of the fields 519f-519 h, a mean of maximum pace time and the minimum pace time are addedto the prompt field 521. Thus, if the user selects a maximum pace of6:00 minutes per mile, and a minimum pace of 8:00 minutes per mile, theaverage of 7:00 minutes per mile will appear in the prompt field 521, asshown in FIG. 5L.

If the user selects the “heartrate less than or equal to” intensitytype, the interface 501 provides the sub-interface 519 i containing thefield 519 j, as shown in FIG. 5M. The user can simply enter a desiredmaximum heartrate (measured based upon a percentage of a user's maximumheartrate) into the field 519 j. Likewise, if the user selects the“heartrate greater than or equal to” intensity type, the interface 501provides the sub-interface 519 k containing the field 5191, as shown inFIG. 5N. Again, the user can simply enter a desired minimum heartrate(measured based upon a percentage of a user's maximum heartrate, forexample) into the field 519 k. With both sub-interfaces 519 i and 519 k,the selected heartrate value is then displayed in the prompt field 521.

In this manner, a user will employ fields 515-519 of a stepsub-interface 511 to define one step of a training script. By enteringvalues into the fields of multiple step sub-interfaces 511, a user maycreate a training script with a plurality of steps sequentially arrangedin the order displayed in the step listing 509. When the training scriptfile is then created from the training script, it will containinstructions commanding the servant device 211 to sequentially displaythe value of the prompt field 521 (that is, the prompt) for each step,starting with the first step in the sequence, until the servant device211 is instructed to display the value of the prompt field 521 for thenext step.

The servant device 211 may receive an instruction to display the promptfor the next step of the training script file directly from the user.For example, if the servant device 211 is implemented as a digitalwatch, it may display the prompt for a step until the athlete using theservant device 211 depresses a command button, and then start the nextsequential step in the training script file by displaying the prompt forthat next sequential step. Thus, a user would perform the activitydisplayed in the prompt for a step for the duration and/or intensityspecified in the prompt. Then, when the activity was completed, the userwould depress the command button to start the next step. That is, theuser would depress the command button to instruct the servant device 211to display the prompt for the next step in sequence. Alternately, when astep is completed, the servant device 211 may receive an instruction toautomatically start the next sequential step from within theinstructions for the completed step, as will be explained below.

When creating or editing a training script, the user determines whethera step will have this automatic start feature by placing a check valuein the auto start field 523 for that step's sub-interface 511 in step609. More particularly, if the user leaves the auto start field 523 fora step empty in step 609, then the training script will not include aninstruction in that step for the servant device 211 to automaticallybegin executing the instructions for the subsequent step. Instead, whenthat step is completed, the servant device 211 will temporarily stopexecuting instructions of the training script until receiving an inputfrom the athlete using the servant device 211. On the other hand, if theuser inserts a check into the field 523 of a step's sub-interface 211 instep 609, the resulting training script file will include instructionsto automatically have the servant device 211 begin executing theinstructions for the subsequent step when that step is completed.

As will be discussed in detail below, the servant device 211 may haveone or more sensors 113 d for measuring characteristics of the user'sworkout or performance data. These characteristics may include, forexample, a time duration measured by a chronometer, a heart ratemeasured by a heart rate monitor, and a distance measured by anaccelerometer or pedometer. These sensors 113 d allow the servant device211 to detect when a user has completed a specified duration orintensity for a step. For example, if the user selects the duration of astep to be six minutes, then a servant device 211 having a chronometermay begin measuring a period of six minutes from when the step isstarted (that is, from when the value of the field 521 for that step isdisplayed to the user). If the value of the field 523 for that step waschecked when the training script was created, then the training scriptfile will include instructions commanding the servant device 211 toautomatically begin executing the instructions for the subsequent stepwhen the chronometer indicates that the six minute time period hasexpired.

Similarly, a step may call for a user to run a distance of six miles ata heart rate of 60% of the user's maximum heart rate or greater. If aservant device 211 executing that step had both a pedometer and a heartrate monitor, it could employ the pedometer to measure the distance runby a user and the heart rate monitor to measure the user's heart rateduring that run. The servant device 211 could then record a totaldistance traveled by the athlete while the athlete's heart rate wasabove the minimum amount. If the user had placed a check in the autostart field 523 when defining the step, then the instructions in thetraining script file would command the servant device 211 toautomatically begin executing the instructions for the next subsequentstep after the servant device 211 detected that the athlete had run atotal of six miles with his or her heart rate above the minimum amount.

Thus, by using creating a training script with steps that automaticallystart a subsequent step when the defined performance data is measured,the invention advantageously frees an athlete from having to constantlyconsider the status of his or her workout routine. That is, an athletecan focus on each activity of a workout, without having to continuouslymonitor if the athlete is complying with the planned duration orintensity for the activity. The servant device 211 informs the user whenan activity has been satisfactorily performed by prompting the athleteto begin performing the next scheduled activity in the workout.

In addition to the auto start field 523, each step sub-interface 511also includes a repeat field 511, as noted above. In step 611, a usermay employ the repeat field 511 to define a training script that repeatsone or more steps. For example, if the user inputs the value “3” intothe repeat field 511 for a step, as shown in FIG. 5O, then the trainingscript file will include instructions commanding the servant device 211to repeat the step three times before executing the next sequentialstep. In addition, the user may use a linking arrow 511 a attached tothe repeat field 511 to link two or more sequential steps together forrepetition, as shown in FIG. 5P. Thus, the resulting training scriptwould include instructions commanding the servant device 211 to executethe instructions of the first three steps listed in the step listing 509once in sequence, and then to repeat the execution of these linked stepsa second time before proceeding to the fourth step in the step listing509 (that is, the “jog” step).

After the user has created a training script file by saving the stepsmaking up a desired training script in step 613, the user may return tothe interface 401 shown in FIG. 4A.

Advantageously, in addition to allowing a user to create a new trainingscript file or modify an existing training script file, the masterdevice 201 will also allow a user to define a schedule of trainingscripts, hereafter referred to as a “plan.” The creation of a plan willbe discussed with reference to FIGS. 7A-7C and FIG. 8, which illustratean interface 701 for creating a plan and a flow chart for using theinterface 701 to create a plan, respectively.

As previously noted, the plan field 405 of interface 401 displaysexisting plans. If the user wishes to create a new plan, the useractivates the plan builder command button 407 a. In response, the masterdevice 201 provides the user interface 701 illustrated in FIG. 7A. Thisuser interface 701 includes a plan selection field 703, a plan namefield 705, and a plan description field 707. In step 801, the userenters the name of the desired plan into the plan selection field 703.Conveniently, the plan selection field 703 may include a drop-down menu703 a, as shown in FIG. 7B. If the user is editing an existing plan, theuser may simply select the name of that plan from the drop-down menu 703a. If, however, the user wishes to create a new plan, the user selectsthe name “New Plan” from the drop-down menu 703 a. The user may thenenter a name into the planned name field 705 and a brief description ofthe new plan in field 707, as also shown in FIG. 7B.

The interface 701 also includes a settings sub-interface 709, a workoutsub-interface 711, and a calendar sub-interface 713. The calendarsub-interface displays a generic calendar with columns corresponding tothe days of the week, while the workout sub-interface 711 displays alisting of existing training script files. In order to create or modifya plan, in step 803 a user drags each training script file from theworkout sub-interface 711 to the desired location on the calendarsub-interface 713.

For example, in FIG. 7A, the workout sub-interface 711 lists thetraining script files entitled “stretch test,” “Test 1,” and “Testworkout.” The user may want to create a three-week workout plan havingthe “stretch test” workout scheduled on the Monday, Wednesday, andFriday of the first week of the plan. The user may also want the “Test1” workout scheduled on the Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday of the secondweek of the plan, and the “Test workout” workout scheduled on the Mondayand Thursday of the third week of the plan. To create this plan, theuser can simply drag and drop icons for the corresponding trainingscript files to the desired locations on the calendar sub-interface 713,as shown in FIG. 7C.

The module of dragging and dropping file icons is well known, and thuswill not be discussed here in detail. Of course, those of ordinary skillin the art will appreciate that alternate techniques may be used toschedule training script files. Also, as seen in FIG. 7C, the calendarsub-interface 713 may not continuously display the titles of the placedtraining script file icons, but may instead only display their titleswhen, for example, the user places a pointer over an icon. Alternately,the calendar sub-interface 713 may display the title of each icon placedin the calendar sub-interface 713.

Once the user has placed the desired training script files at theappropriate locations in the calendar sub-interface 713, the userdesignates the settings for scheduling the training script files tocreate or edit the plan in step 805. As previously noted, the interface701 includes a settings sub-interface 709. The settings sub-interface709 includes two fill radial buttons 715 and 717, entitled “forward” and“backward,” respectively. It also includes three anchor date radialbuttons 719-723. Beneath the first anchor date radial button 719,entitled “fixed,” is a calendar field 719 a that allows a user to selecta specific month, date and year. The second anchor date radial button721 is entitled “user choice.” The third anchor date radial button 723includes a drop-down menu 723 a listing the days of the week.

In order to establish a workout plan, the user anchors the first date orthe last date of the training script files scheduled in the genericcalendar of the calendar sub-interface to an actual date. For example,the user may with to schedule training script files to prepare for amarathon on Nov. 13, 2002. Accordingly, the user may want to anchor theplan so that the last workout of the plan takes place on Nov. 12, 2002.To do so, the user would select the anchor date radial button 719, andset the value of the calendar field 719 a to Nov. 12, 2002. The userwould then select the “backward” fill radial button 717, to have theplan scheduled backward from the last workout of the plan occurring onNov. 12, 2002.

Alternately, the user may want to schedule a three-week plan that startson the first Tuesday of each three-week period. In this case, the userwould select the anchor date radial button 723, and select the dayTuesday from the drop down menu 723 a. The user would also select the“forward” fill radial button 715, to have the plan scheduled forwardfrom the first workout of the plan occurring on the first Tuesday ofeach three-week period.

Accordingly, in step 803, the user selects a fill setting for the plan,and in step 805 selects an anchor date for the plan. Then in step 807,the user activates the “save” button 725 to save the plan, completingthe plan creation process.

Returning now to FIG. 4A, a user may select a schedule for plans orindividual training script files to be included in the user's profile.As previously noted, the interface 401 includes a calendar sub-interface413. The calendar sub-interface 413 displays a calendar showing thecurrent month. To include a plan in the user's profile, the user firstdrags and drops a plan onto a date in the calendar sub-interface 413, asshown in FIG. 4B. In response, the master device 201 displays theschedule plan interface 901 shown in FIG. 9.

As seen in this figure, the plan interface 901 includes a plan datasub-interface 903, a fill setting sub-interface 905, a “cancel” button907 and an “ok” button 909. The plan data sub-interface 903 includes theplan name, the length of the plan schedule, and the description of theplan. The fill setting sub-interface 905 includes two fill dial buttons905 a and 905 b, entitled “forward” and “backward,” respectively. Thefill setting sub-interface 905 also includes an anchor date field 905 c,which allows the user to specify a specific calendar date, and a dropdown menu 905 d listing the days of the week. As with the settingssub-interface 709 in the interface 701, the user may employ the fillsetting sub-interface 905 to anchor the plan. When the user is satisfiedthat the plan schedule is correct, the user activates the “ok” button909. In response, the master device 201 may place icons for the trainingscript files making up the plan on their appropriate dates in thecalendar sub-interface 413.

As previously noted, in addition to placing a plan schedule in the userprofile, a user may also place a schedule for individual trainingscripts into the his or her user profile. That is, a user may drag anddrop an icon for a single training script file from the workoutsub-interface 409 at a desired location on the calendar sub-interface413.

Synchronizing the Master Device with the Servant Device

When a user wishes to download training script files from the masterdevice 201 to the servant device 211, referred to as “synchronizing” themaster device 201 with the servant device 211, the user activates the“sync” button 415 in interface 401. In response, the master device 201transfers all of the training script files listed in the favoriteworkouts sub-interface 411. In addition, the master device 201 transfersthe upcoming scheduled training script files that have been place in thecalendar sub-interface 413.

More particularly, the master device 201 notes the date of thesynchronization, and identifies the subsequent dates for, for example,the upcoming week. The master device 201 then attaches a date tag toeach of the training script files that have been placed in the calendarsub-interface 413 on the dates in the week following the synchronizationdate, and transfers these training script files with their associateddate tags to the servant device 211. As will be discussed further below,the servant device 211 can then employ these date tags to ensure thatthe training script file is presented to a user for execution on thedate scheduled with the master device 201.

In addition to transferring training script files to the servant device211, the master device 201 may also receive information from the servantdevice 211 during synchronization. For example, with some embodiments ofthe invention, the servant device 211 may collect actual data regardinga user's workout, including the actual duration or intensity completedfor activities listed in a training script file. The master device 201can then associate this data with the icons for those training scriptsin the calendar sub-interface 413. This conveniently allows a user toreview his or her athletic performance in comparison with the criteriaof the training script.

Device for Executing a Training Script

As previously noted, FIG. 1 also illustrates a servant device 211 forexecuting a training script. The servant device 211 includes a servantcontrol module 213, a servant device interface module 215, and a servantscript database 217. The servant device interface module 215 receives atraining script file from the master device 201. The servant controlmodule 213 then stores the training script file in the servant scriptdatabase 217.

The servant device 211 also includes a display 219 and one or moresensors 221 (identified as sensors 115 d in the above description of ageneral computer device) for detecting a characteristic of a user duringa workout. The sensors 221 may include, for example, a heart ratemonitor to measure a user's heart rate, an accelerometer, pedometer orGlobal Positioning Satellite (GPS) receiver to measure the distance thata user travels, or a blood pressure monitor to monitor a user's bloodpressure. The sensors 221 may also include sensors for detecting acharacteristic of the user's workout itself For example, the sensors 221may include a chronometer or chronograph for measuring time periodsduring which an action is performed. The sensors 221 may also include abicycle force sensor, to measure an amount of force produced by abicyclist while biking. Still further, the sensor 221 may be a specialpurpose sensor that can, for example, detect the operation of aweightlifting machine or other exercise device configured to provideperformance data to the sensor. Of course, any suitable device formeasuring performance data relating to a workout may be used as a sensor221.

Still further, the servant device 211 may include a servant userinterface module 223 for detecting an input by a user. For example, theservant device 211 may have a servant user interface module 223 fordetecting the depression of an input button. This servant user interfacemodule 223 allows a user to input data to the servant device 211regarding the user's workout that may not easily be detectable by asensor 211. For example, a training step may call for an athlete toperform 30 repetitions of a weight lifting exercise. An automated sensorcannot easily detect the number of repetitions of a weight liftingexercise using a convention weight lifting device. The athlete, however,may conveniently depress a command button after having performed thescripted 30 repetitions. The servant user interface module 223 can thendetect the depression of the command button, and forward thisinformation to the servant control module 213.

When an athlete wants to exercise according to a training script, theuser selects the training script file with that training script from theservant script database 217. In response, the servant control module 213executes the appropriate instructions defined in the training script.More particularly, by executing the instructions in the training scriptfile, the servant control module 213 causes the display 219 to displaythe prompt for each step included in the training script file. Aspreviously noted, the display 219 will sequentially display the promptfor each step in the training script until the servant control module213 receives an instruction commanding the display 219 to display theprompt for the next step. As was also previously explained, thisinstruction may be provided directly from the user by, for example, theuser depressing a command button. Alternately, this instruction may beautomatically generated when one of the sensors 221 measures a specifiedvalue, as discussed in detail above.

Conclusion

Thus, the master training script device of the invention convenientlyallows a user to create a training script defining one or more steps ofa workout routine, where each step may include an activity, a durationfor performing that activity, and an intensity at which the activity isto be performed. Further, one or more steps of the training script canbe self starting in response to performance data detected by sensors ofthe servant training script device. This conveniently frees the athletefrom having to continuously monitor the status of his or her workoutactivities. Still further, the training script device convenientlyallows a user to transfer training scripts to other training scriptdevices, so that athletes can share successful training scripts.

While the invention has been described with respect to specific examplesincluding presently preferred modes of carrying out the invention, thoseskilled in the art will appreciate that there are numerous variationsand permutations of the above described systems and techniques that fallwithin the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in theappended claims.

1. A method comprising: measuring a physiological characteristic of auser during a workout; processing, by a processor, an electronictraining script defining a sequence in which the user is instructed toperform a plurality of activities; prompting the user to perform a nextactivity of the plurality of activities in the sequence based on ameasurement of the physiological characteristic indicating completion ofa previous activity in the sequence; and measuring a distance traveledby the user or a travel speed of the user, wherein the indicatingcompletion of the previous activity is based on the distance traveledexceeding a predetermined distance or the travel speed exceeding apredetermined rate.
 2. The method recited in claim 1, wherein thephysiological characteristic is at least one of a heart rate of theuser, blood pressure of the user, and blood-oxygen content of the user.3. The method recited in claim 1, wherein the prompting of the usercomprises presenting an instruction to run.
 4. The method recited inclaim 3, wherein the instruction is at least one of an instruction torun at a predetermined speed, an instruction to run a predetermineddistance, and/or an instruction to run for a predetermined amount oftime.
 5. The method recited in claim 1, wherein the prompting of theuser comprises presenting an instruction to rest for a predeterminedamount of time.
 6. The method recited in claim 1, wherein the promptingof the user comprises presenting an instruction to stretch.
 7. Themethod recited in claim 1, wherein the prompting of the user comprisespresenting an instruction to stretch for a predetermined amount of time.8. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising processinginformation received from a remote sensing device.
 9. The method recitedin claim 8, wherein the information comprises at least one of heart rateinformation and/or acceleration information.
 10. The method recited inclaim 1, wherein the measurement further comprises a measurement of atleast one of a travel speed of the user, and a travel distance of theuser.
 11. The method recited in claim 1, wherein the training scriptincludes a plurality of steps, and wherein each of the steps has adefined performance data, and wherein the plurality of steps eachautomatically start a subsequent step when the defined performance dataof the previous step has been measured.
 12. The method recited in claim1, wherein the prompting of the user prompts for input prior toprompting the user to perform the next activity.
 13. A methodcomprising: measuring a physiological characteristic of a user;processing, by a processor, a training script defining a sequence ofactivities; prompting performance of a next activity in the sequencebased on the measuring of the physiological characteristic indicatingcompletion of a previous activity in the sequence; and measuring adistance traveled by the user or a travel speed of the user, wherein theindicating completion of the previous activity is based on the distancetraveled exceeding a predetermined distance or the travel speedexceeding a predetermined rate.
 14. The method recited in claim 13,wherein the physiological characteristic is at least one of a heartrate, blood pressure, and blood-oxygen content.
 15. A method comprising:processing, by a processor, a sequence of activities; promptingperformance of a next activity in the sequence based on a measurement ofphysiological characteristic indicating completion of a previousactivity in the sequence; and measuring a distance traveled by the useror a travel speed of the user, wherein the indicating completion of theprevious activity is based on the distance traveled exceeding apredetermined distance or the travel speed exceeding a predeterminedrate.
 16. The method recited in claim 15, wherein the physicalperformance characteristic is at least one of a heart rate, bloodpressure, and blood-oxygen content.
 17. The method recited in claim 15,further comprising automatically prompting to start the next activity inthe sequence in response to the measurement corresponding topredetermined performance data associated with the previous activity.